30 years on from the 1994 Contest and a Eurovision record that won’t be broken

(clockwise from top-left: Russia's Youddiph, Poland's Edyta Górniak, Romania's Dan Bittman, Lithuania's Ovidijus Vyšniauskas, Estonia's Silvia Vrait, Slovakia's Tublatanka, and Hungary's Friderika)

Saturday 30 April 1994 was, and remains to this day, a night for the history books on the shelves of the European Broadcasting Union archives. 

Not only did the Contest see a brand-new record-holder of wins rise to prominence thanks to Ireland achieving a 6th victory, but that Irish entry - Rock 'n' Roll Kids by Paul Harrington & Charlie McGettigan - did so via a record-breaking score of 226 points. And of course the host broadcaster ended up treating viewers at home to an interval act like few others, with the global phenomenon that was to be, Riverdance.

The night also bore witness to another record being achieved, however. And while both of Ireland's aforementioned new heights have since been overtaken, this one remains unbeaten. And it's likely to stay unbeaten!

As the 1994 Contest approached, Eurovision experienced a whole new level of interest in participation. So much so, that Dublin '94 ended up playing host to the largest expansion of new broadcasters taking part in one year since the very first Eurovision Song Contest happened back in 1956, almost 4 decades prior. 

Among the 25 countries participating at the 1994 Contest, we had no less than 7 broadcasters competing at Eurovision on their first outing. Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Russia and Slovakia all debuted at the 39th edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. 

And viewers at home not only got to watch as 7 countries presented their music on the Eurovision stage for the very first time, they also witnessed the debut appearance at the Contest for all 7 languages: Estonian, Hungarian, Lithuanian, Polish, Romanian, Russian and Slovak. 

Results wise, it was a mixed bag of two extremes. Fortunes fell into either the top tier of the scoreboard or the bottom end, with no middle-ground placings for any of our debuting countries. 

On the left-hand side of the scoreboard, Poland, Hungary and Russia experienced a triumphant first go at the Contest, with all three of them finishing inside the Top 10. 

At the lower end of the table however, the other 4 debuting nations landed inside the bottom 7. And Lithuania had particularly bad luck on their first try - finishing in last place and scoring 0 points. 

Mercifully for the Baltic nation however, it was to be their first AND their last time finishing at the bottom of the table in a Grand Final, and they’ve also never scored 0 points since then - in either a Grand Final or a Semi-Final. 

Many things have changed in the 30 years since that 1994 Contest. For a start, back then Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Russia and Slovakia needed to bring sheet paper for a conductor, as the live orchestra wasn't yet to be phased out of the Contest until a few years later. The 7 countries were also back then confined to singing in just their native language. Since then, all 7 have performed at least one English-language song at the Contest.

And of course, in 1994, participants of the Eurovision Song Contest didn't really need to have the viewers at home in mind when they planned the staging of their performances - with TV audiences not yet contributing to 50% of the votes received in the Grand Final. Back then, jury baiting was the name of the game if you wanted to score victory!

Since that Saturday night in 1994, every one of that record number of participating nations that debuted at the 39th Contest has gone on to forge their own unique Eurovision legacies.

Poland’s start in 1994 was a strong one. The broadcaster TVP achieved the most successful debut result of any country in the history of the Contest at the time (that first 1956 Contest aside). Its second-place finish remains to this day Poland’s best ever Eurovision placing. And To Nie Ja! by Edyta Górniak is still a big favourite among Eurovision followers, considered one of the all-time great ballads.

Hungary’s broadcaster MTV also hit an immediate high upon entering in 1994. The 4th-place finish that it earned in Dublin - via Kinek Mondjam El Vétkeimet? by Friderika - has yet to be beaten in the 17 Contests that Hungary has participated in since. 

Russia’s 9th-place result on its very first Eurovision scoreboard was another bold beginning, thanks to a memorable performance of Vechny Strannik by Youddiph. But the country went on to achieve even more noteworthy things at the Eurovision Song Contest - including a win in 2008 and 8 more finishes inside the Top 3.

Slovakia has competed just 6 more times since that 1994 debut with Nekonečná Pieseň by Martin Ďurinda and Tublatanka, but only twice more appearing in the Grand Final. Nonetheless they did manage to improve on that 19th-place finish, slightly; two years later their entry landed in 18th. 

Romania’s initial 21st-place result with Dincolo De Nori by Dan Bittman has been improved upon many times in broadcaster TVR’s 22 participations since 1994. The country has landed in the Top 10 of the Grand Final 6 times, with their best result being a 3rd place finish in both 2005 and 2010, courtesy of Let Me Try by Luminița Anghel & Sistem and Playing With Fire by Paula Selling & Ovi respectively.

Estonia finished second from bottom on broadcaster ERR’s first outing in 1994, with Nagu Merelaine by Silvia Vrait. Since then, Estonia has won the Eurovision Song Contest (in 2001), and has placed inside the Top 10 of the Grand Final an impressive ten more times. 

And finally, Lithuania’s zero-points last-placer - Lopšinė Mylimai by Ovidijus Vyšniauskas - laid the roots for a much more admirable legacy. The country has returned for 23 Contests since its debut, and can now boast of three Top 10 placings in the Grand Final. 

1994... the year when 7 more Rock 'n' Roll Kids were added to our Eurovision family!